House Plant Index
THREADLEAF (ARALIA)
Dizygotheca clegantissima
Flowers |
Rarely in cultivation |
Potting or re-potting time |
March and April |
Position in garden during summer |
Shade |
Potting Mixture |
5 |
The threadleaf is a tender foliage plant with variable, divided leaves of metallic green. The foliage may be wide and leathery in texture, or threadlike and drooping in any of the numerous forms it is most decorative.
While some 20 species of the genus Aralia are known, the aralia of florists and greenhouses is probably Dizygotheca elegantissima, although it is sold as Aralia elegantissima.
The foliage of this plant needs moist air in order to retain its beauty and color-dry air quickly shrivels and browns the compound leaves. Treat it as you would a fern. Spray the leaves regularly, keep the plant from direct rays of the sun and provide as humid an atmosphere as possible.
Additional plants are obtained by dividing roots in the spring, or by root cuttings, but propagation is difficult without greenhouse conditions. |